The Indian Institute of Science’s (IISc) Department of Instrumentation and Applied Physics (IAP) has created an ultramicro supercapacitor that can store a large amount of electric charge despite its small size.

Unlike batteries, capacitors are unable to discharge energy continuously, making them unsuitable for powering devices such as mobile phones.

However, supercapacitors offer the benefits of both batteries and capacitors as they have the capability to both store and release large amounts of energy, making them highly sought after for advanced electronic devices.

The researchers intend to investigate whether replacing MoS2 with other materials can further increase the capacitance of their supercapacitor.

They said their fully functional supercapacitor can be integrated into energy-storage devices through on-chip integration, such as electric car batteries or miniaturized systems.

They plan to apply for a patent for the supercapacitor.

This new supercapacitor is smaller and more condensed than previous models. It can be utilized in consumer electronic devices, electric vehicles, streetlights, and medical devices.

In the study, which has been published in ACS Energy Letters, the researchers said they utilized Field Effect Transistors (FETs) as charge collectors for their supercapacitor instead of the metallic electrodes that are commonly used in traditional capacitors.

According to Abha Misra, Professor at IAP and corresponding author of the study, “Using FET as an electrode for supercapacitors is something new for tuning charge in a capacitor.”

After manufacturing the supercapacitor, the researchers measured its electrochemical capacitance or charge-holding capacity by applying various voltages.

Their findings showed that the capacitance increased by 3000% under specific conditions, which was significantly higher than the 18% increase observed in a capacitor containing only MoS2 without graphene under the same conditions.

Currently, batteries are the primary power source for many devices. But batteries have a limited lifespan as they gradually lose their capacity to store charge over time. Capacitors, on the other hand, can store electric charge for much longer periods due to their design.

For instance, a capacitor operating at 5 volts will maintain the same voltage even after 10 years.

Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) have developed a solution that combines power from renewable sources with electricity from the public grid and uses batteries to compensate for fluctuations.

Earlier this month, researchers at the Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, China, and Kyushu Institute of Technology, Japan, claimed to upcycle crab shells into porous, carbon-filled materials with various uses, including using the crab carbon to create anode materials for sodium-ion batteries.